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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tube · field · fork · foot · vault · cell · key · lie

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. field — for sport
  3. tube — a container
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. cell — a phone
  8. lie — to recline
  9. key — the most important part
  10. fork — in a road
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. vault — a safe
  13. key — for a lock
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. key — in music
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. foot — a measure
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. tube — the underground
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. cell — in biology
  24. fork — a garden tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com